A domestic violence victim's frantic phone call to Triple Zero was described by a magistrate as "chilling" when it was played aloud in Orange Local Court.
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In an audio recording which was tendered to court by police, the call begins with a woman stating her name and requesting police assistance to her home. Before she can finish telling the Triple Zero operator her address, her voice is drowned out by a man screaming expletives at her.
The offender - who cannot be named in order to protect the identity of the victim - was in police custody when he appeared in court on Tuesday.
The 33-year-old man initially pleaded not guilty to two charges relating to domestic violence against the woman he had been in a relationship with at the time: destroy or damage property and intimidate or intend fear.
In addition to the Triple Zero call, footage from the responding police officer's body worn camera was also submitted as evidence.
The court heard that the call had been made at 7.39am on the morning of October 19. At 7.45 police had arrived at the scene.
One of whom - Constable Abbey Golder - gave evidence that when police arrived at the victim's unit, they had heard "smashing" coming from inside as well as the victim yelling "help me, help me".
After entering the kitchen, police found broken plates, glassware and contents of a utensils draw scattered across the floor. The offender denied smashing the items on purpose.
Shortly after the prosecution submitted their evidence against the offender, he decided to change his plea from not guilty to guilty.
His legal representative, Mason Manwaring, told the court that at the time of his client's offending he had been affected by drugs.
Mr Manwaring also argued that the offender had not been convicted of any violent crimes since 2008.
Magistrate David Day responded by calling this defence "an example of how normalised violence is in local court". Most people did not have criminal records for assault, he said.
"He was appalling towards that lady. She took him into her unit and he smashed the place up, terrifying her," Mr Day said.
He commended the actions of the Triple Zero operator who took the "quite chilling" phone call, keeping it going as she repeatedly tried to get the victim to respond, asking "Are you there?" and "Can you hear me?".
Mr Day acknowledged the issue of the man's need for drug rehabilitation which couldn't be met by a prison sentence, and he was subsequently given an 18-month Intensive Corrections Order with 50 hours of community service.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, family or domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au.
In an emergency, call 000.
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